Academic Medical Centers. Adequate government reimbursement for medical services is critical to our nation’s comprehensive academic medical centers, which serve as the primary health care resource for our poorest citizens, provide cutting-edge
medical discovery, and teach and train our next generation of
physicians.

Biomedical Research. Recognizing the critical importance of research, the Republican Congress, rejecting the administration’s lower figures, has already begun to fulfill its pledge to double funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This is
one of the few areas in which government investment yields tangible results; and
those benefits can be greatest for currently underserved and minority
populations, in which disparities persist in life expectancy, infant mortality,
as well as death rates from heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. With one out of
four Americans contracting cancer, we need to increase not only research but
also early detection and prevention efforts. Since Republicans took control of
Congress in January 1995, our party has led in setting sound HIV/AIDS policy,
including increased research funding and access to health services. We remain
committed to, and place a high priority on, finding a cure for HIV/AIDS. With
the enormous increase in resources for biomedical research comes accountability
for its use, as well as responsibility to maintain the highest ethical
standards. We applaud congressional Republicans for the steps they have taken
for protection of human embryos and against human cloning, the trafficking in
fetal tissue organs, and related abuses.
Safe Clinical Trials. Ensuring the safety of patients who participate in investigational clinical trials is fundamental to the future of medical innovation. The lack of oversight by the current administration in gene therapy
trials put patients at risk and undermined critical research. A Republican
administration will require the Food and Drug Administration and NIH to make
patient protection a priority in clinical trial research.
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Investing in science to battle disease. We will push the boundaries of science in search of new
medical therapies and cures. The Bush Administration has put ideology over science, skewing
information about everything from women's health to scientific research. Americans deserve
access to the best evidence available about illnesses, therapies, and cures. From new therapies to
prolong life for people with AIDS, to new openings in the battle to cure cancer, the possibilities of
medical research fill us with hope. We will secure more funding for aggressive biomedical
research seeking affordable and effective therapies based on real science.
President Bush has rejected the calls from Nancy Reagan, Christopher Reeve and Americans
across the land for assistance with embryonic stem cell research. We will reverse his wrongheaded
policy. Stem cell therapy offers hope to more than 100 million Americans who have serious
illnesses – from Alzheimer's to heart disease to juvenile diabetes to Parkinson's. We will pursue
this research under the strictest ethical guidelines, but we will not walk away from the chance to
save lives and reduce human suffering. |
| Consumer ProtectionThe Issue: Government consumer protection regulation restricts the competition of the free market and replaces the individual's right to make independent choices with government-determined, "one size fits all" standards.
The
Principle: Consumer demand rather than legislative mandate should
drive consumer safety and protection. We support strong and effective
laws against fraud and misrepresentation. However, we oppose
paternalistic regulations, which dictate to consumers, impose prices,
define standards for products, or otherwise restrict risk-taking and
free choice.
Solutions: We encourage consumer activism
that would boycott and economically sanction those businesses that
adversely affect human health and/or damage the environment, passing
costs on to the general public. We look to independent entities such as
Underwriters Laboratories, Consumer Reports and other testing
organizations as models for grassroots consumer-driven certification.
Transitional Action: End governmental interference in
consumer affairs by eliminating the Consumer Product Safety Commission,
the Federal Aviation Administration, the Food and Drug Administration
and other ineffective governmental organizations. Repeal laws mandating
use of safety equipment such as seat belts or crash helmets, which can
be more effectively driven by consumer action in the marketplace.
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